‘It’s only coming up to three o’clock now and you can see the water is still covering the causeway towards Sea’s End.’
‘It can’t be only three o’clock now. The clock in the van said it was half three.’
‘Well, I suggest it’s probably not working.’
Verity was quiet. That was actually a strong possibility because, now she came to think about it, it always seemed to be mid-afternoon when she checked the time. ‘I forgot to charge my phone because I had other things on my mind.’ It seemed her perfect time on Puffin Island had just ended with a very expensive disaster.
Sam was rowing back towards the four-wheel drive.
‘How did you come to rescue me?’
‘There’s a group of island coastguards on a rota. My shift has only just started. I was heading towards the rescue hut to take over when I saw you from the top of Lighthouse Lane. I just thought you were going to park up and when you kept on going, I raised the alarm.’
‘What will happen to my van?’
‘It’ll be towed to the cliff top.’
Verity looked horrified. ‘You aren’t going to push her off the edge of the cliff, are you?’
‘Don’t be daft. Just the other side of Pete’s place is a small garage owned by Nathan, the local mechanic. He’ll do a post mortem.’ For the first time Sam had a look of amusement on his face.
When they reached the car, Sam stood up in the canoe and stepped out. Verity felt an utter fool. Looking back at Hetty she felt a sense of panic. ‘How am I going to get to Amsterdam?’
‘Certainly not in that van, but you can cross the causeway in a taxi and catch the ferry. By the colour of your lips, though, I’d suggest you need to make sure you’re physically fit before you go anywhere.’
Verity was freezing, she was wet through and beginning to shiver, probably from the shock of her ordeal. She knew things could have been a lot worse if Sam hadn’t spotted her. ‘I can’t leave the van here. She’s my home for the next six months so I didn’t have to pay for hotels.’
Sam looked towards the van. ‘I’m sorry to say this, but I beg to differ.’ Helping Verity out of the canoe, he opened the boot of the car and pulled out a thermal blanket. ‘We need to get you warm.’
‘I’ve got no dry clothes. They’re all in …’ She didn’t finish her sentence, instead promptly bursting into tears.
‘You’re not the first and you won’t be the last to get stuck in the water. Jump in the car – the seat warmer is on. Clemmie’s an early bird so I’ll message to see if she has any spare clothes and hopefully she’ll pick up the text when she wakes.’
Verity climbed into the seat with the thermal blanket wrapped around her shoulders.
‘In the meantime, you’ll have to have another one of my hoodies.’ This time he smiled. ‘Are you okay?’ His voice had softened considerably.
‘I’m a complete idiot. If only I’d charged my phone, I’d have seen the correct time.’
‘I can’t argue with that.’
‘What happens to me now?’
‘There’s a rescue hut, where you can sit and wait whilst you decide your next move, but as nowhere opens for hours you can come back to mine and make yourself comfortable. I’m on shift until lunch time. Let me load up the canoe whilst you decide.’ Sam pointed towards the mainland. ‘The tide has turned.’
Verity could now see the clear causeway leading to Sea’s End. She closed her eyes for a moment whilst Sam slammed the boot shut and climbed behind the wheel.
‘If only I’d waited another hour.’
‘If only.’ Sam radioed in on the walkie talkie. ‘Stranded motorist rescued. I’ll arrange for Nathan to tow the van up to the garage.’
Verity didn’t know who Sam was talking to, but she was so cold that her teeth began uncontrollably chattering.
‘Two minutes and I’ll get you inside and the fire lit. You need to get out of those wet clothes and warmed up. Your body temperature will be dropping.’
‘Thank you. I actually feel really tired and I’m soaked to the bone.’ She looked in the sun visor mirror, seeing the tinge of blue to her lips that Sam had mentioned.
‘I’m not surprised, you’ve probably only had a couple of hours’ sleep. Any idea whether you’re still going to attempt to catch your ferry? Because if you are we’ll need to arrange transport to get you there.’
